Corneal calls for strong Pro League

Corneal was speaking at the T&T Pro League symposium at the Crowne Plaza in Port-of-Spain entitled “World Cup 2006 — Review and Recommendations.”

Corneal, in his address said the time for celebrating the Soca Warriors’ debut performance at the World Cup is over and the focus now must be on what lies ahead.

“We need to take ourselves away from the Germany experience and look back at all the things we have been doing wrong in the past and correct it as we move forward,” he said.

“Yes, there were positives coming out of the national team’s performance in Germany, but we still have a long way to go before we can feel any sense of accomplishment,” Corneal said.

“Germany 2006 was definitely an achievement for the country, but if we produce a similar performance in 2010 it will be considered a total failure.”

Looking ahead at the challenges, the former national striker advised that all locally based professional players plying their trade in the T&T Pro League must take a hint from the professional attitude displayed by the Soca Warriors in Germany.

“If our locally based players take a hint from their very own peers who went to Germany, it will be a step in the right direction as the attitude displayed in Germany by our players was uncharacteristic of Trinidad and Tobago.

“There was no laid back mentality. Everyday whether it was on the field of play or on the training pitch the guys always meant business,” Corneal said.

“The T&T Pro League and by extension its clubs must insist that professional attitude emanates throughout the league, as it’s the only way we will start preparing our players for when they get to that level and are called on to perform for Trinidad and Tobago,” he said.

He also warned about not going over the top.

“While we are all thinking about 2010, let’s not forget there is 2007, 2008 and 2009. We have Under-17 and Under-20 World Championships to try and qualify for and we also have two CONCACAF Gold Cups before 2010,” he said.

“We need to start qualifying for the Youth World Championships and become dominant in our own CONCACAF region. It is time we make a Gold Cup final. We must use these tournaments as stepping stones towards the ultimate goal of 2010,” added Corneal.

The FIFA Technical Committee member concluded by emphasising the importance of investing in the youths.

“We found millions in order to prepare our Soca Warriors when they needed it.

“Let’s now find millions to develop our young players, it’s the only way we will be truly ready to mount a serious challenge in 2010,” he said.